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Jazmine Ibarra

Elena Jurado

Government & Civics

9 April 2021

Civics Final Task: Anti-Asian Hate

During the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a surge in hate crimes, violence, and

racism towards Asian Americans. Due to anti-Asian hate, the Asian American Pacific Islander

(AAPI) community has faced three thousand eight hundred and counting hate crimes (Yam).

Moreover, the data states that most of the attacks, sixty-eight percent, have been targeting

women and men at twenty-nine percent, but it is left out of the spotlight that the elderly have also

been facing the brunt of these hate crimes. Anti-Asian hate has been taking the lives of innocent

Asian American people who have done no wrong. The lives that have been taken due to these

hate crimes are not being served justice and for this, the AAPI community and their allies are

rising up.

More than hate crimes, Asian Americans are facing harassment, physical assault,

shunning, racial slurs, mocking, and unfair treatment, which needs to be not only discussed but

also stopped. Every day we see other issues in our world brought into the news, but rarely is

anti-Asian hate talked about. The lack of discussion and recognition of these hate crimes has led

to the suffering, injuries, and deaths of Asian Americans around the world. It has left the AAPI

community and their allies angry and upset, for they are being used as a scapegoat for

COVID-19, also dubbed the “China virus” (Chapell), or “Kung flu”, by our former president,

President Donald Trump, which is unacceptable and should not be tolerated. By not educating
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ourselves and one another, we are failing to keep members of our community safe, because

communities are not bound by race, but by choice.

In the podcast, “The History Of Anti-Asian Sentiment In The U.S.”, Ailsa Chang and

“former Asian American studies professor at U.C. Berkeley”, Dale Minami, provides evidence

that anti-Asian hate is not new (Chang). Minami describes that anti-Asian hate dates back to “the

first immigration of Chinese to this country in the 1850s, to the present”, and the “massacre of 20

Chinese Americans in LA. They were lynched. We’ve seen the incarceration of Japanese

Americans, the murder of Vincent Chin in 1982, demonization of Chinese during the McCarthy

era and the aftermath of the Gulf War and September 11, when Muslim and Indian Americans

were very much subject to violence and discrimination” (Chang). Failing to recognize our faults

as a country and refusing to take action to support these important members of our country is

preventing us from making long-due improvements. By recognizing these past events and

current events as hate crimes instead of trying to justify them by making excuses, such as having

a “bad day” (Chappell), or having a “sexual addiction” (Nawaz), our country can move forward

and celebrate something worth being proud of—being more respectful and kind towards those of

different races.

Thus far, well-known figures, celebrities, and more have spoken out about these

anti-Asian hate crimes, but some may say that addressing the issue is not enough, and it is not

enough. Addressing the issue is not enough to stop some people from murdering Asian

Americans, abusing elders, or harassing them, and not have it covered up by the media.

Addressing the issue by talking about it is only a step in the right direction, but we must continue

walking on to make things better. Another step we must take to stop Asian hate or any

racially-motivated actions towards others of a different race is acknowledging that the deaths of
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these people were in fact hate crimes and that the suspect was intentional with their actions.

America must stop covering up for the mistakes of their people and make up for it by calling it

out as it is—hate.

Apart from acknowledging these horrible events as hate crimes, there also needs to be a

safe space for Asian Americans or anyone of any background/race to speak out about what they

have faced if they choose to, as well as a protocol for people to report these hate crimes, not just

post and share videos. The Stop AAPI Hate organization has a platform that has made it possible

to support Asian Americans through donations and they have a space to report a hate crime. If

someone is being harassed, injured, it can now be reported to stopaapihate.org. Furthermore,

bringing to light the hate that existed back then, that also continues to exist today, is so

meaningful and empowering in these hard times. Stand with and support the AAPI community

by spreading awareness, love and support. Spread love, not hate.

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Works Cited

Chang, Ailsa. “The History Of Anti-Asian Sentiment In The U.S.” NPR, NPR, 18 Mar. 2021,

www.npr.org/2021/03/18/978832077/the-history-of-anti-asian-sentiment-in-the-u-s.

Chappell, Bill, and Dustin Jones. “'Enough Is Enough': Atlanta-Area Spa Shootings Spur Debate

Over Hate Crime Label.” NPR, NPR, 18 Mar. 2021,

www.npr.org/2021/03/18/978680316/atlanta-spa-shootings-expose-frustration-and-debate

-over-hate-crime-label.

Nawaz, Amna, and Vignesh Ramachandran. “How to Address the Surge of Anti-Asian Hate

Crimes.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 4 Mar. 2021,

www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/watch-live-how-to-address-the-surge-of-anti-asian-hate-cr

imes.

Stop AAPI Hate, https://stopaapihate.org/

Yam, Kimmy. “There Were 3,800 Anti-Asian Racist Incidents, Mostly against Women, in Past

Year.” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, 19 Mar. 2021,

www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/there-were-3-800-anti-asian-racist-incidents-mos

tly-against-n1261257.